Running the Bases - The Hookslide. Johnny Verges, third baseman for the Phila. Phillies, warns young players to practice the hook slide on soft ground where there is no danger of catching the spikes and injuring the ankles. The slider must be able to hook the bag on either side, depending upon which direction the baseman is trying to tag him. Let us suppose he is sliding to the right side. As he approaches the base he falls away, extending his right foot, careful to curl his ankle slightly upward to avoid catching his spikes. With the toe of his left foot he "hooks" the bag, thus giving the baseman only his ankle as a tagging target.